TONIGHT'S GAME
The Rangers will face-off against the Carolina Hurricanes tonight, Mar. 7, at PNC Arena (7:00 p.m. — TV: MSG 2; Radio: Bloomberg Radio), in a Metropolitan Division matchup. The Blueshirts currently rank third in the Metropolitan Division standings, and seventh in the Eastern Conference, with a record of 33-26-4 (70 pts). The Rangers enter the contest having been defeated by the Toronto Maple Leafs, 3-2, in overtime on Wednesday at Madison Square Garden, in an Original Six matchup. The Blueshirts have now registered a point in 13 of their last 19 games (12-6-1), and are 17-8-2 in their last 27. The Hurricanes enter the contest with a 27-26-9 (63 pts) record to rank 13th in the Eastern Conference, and have lost five of their last six games. Following tonight’s contest, the Rangers will return to action when they face-off against the Detroit Red Wings on Sunday, Mar. 9, at Madison Square Garden (12:30 p.m.), in an Original Six matinée matchup.

RANGERS vs. HURRICANES

All-Time: 63-48-7-2 overall (38-17-4-2 at home; 25-31-3-0 on the road)

2013-14: Tonight is the second of four meetings this season, and the first of two meetings at PNC Arena. New York is 1-0-0 (1-0-0 at home; 0-0-0 on the road), following a 5-1 win on Nov. 2 at Madison Square Garden. The Rangers out-shot the Hurricanes, 38-28, including a 27-14 advantage through two periods, while their power play was 1-4 (25.0%) in the contest. The line of Derek Stepan (three goals), Chris Kreider (three assists), and Mats Zuccarello (three assists) combined for Stepan's second career hat trick, while Carl Hagelin notched two goals. Henrik Lundqvist made 27 saves.

Last Season: New York was 3-0-0 overall (1-0-0 at home; 2-0-0 on the road). Two of the three contests were decided by one goal, including a 2-1 shootout victory on Mar. 18 at Madison Square Garden. The Rangers' power play was 3-11 (27.3%) in the series, while the penalty kill was 9-10 (90.0%). Derek Stepan led all skaters in scoring with three goals and five points in three games, while Carl Hagelin tied for the series lead with three assists. Henrik Lundqvist was 3-0-0 with a 1.60 GAA and .950 Sv%.

The Rangers enter the contest with a nine-game winning streak against the Hurricanes, including five straight wins at Carolina, and have out-scored the Hurricanes 36-17 during the streak

The Blueshirts have allowed two goals or fewer in six of the last eight games against the Hurricanes

SPIRIT OF ST. LOUIS
Martin St. Louis made his Rangers debut on Wednesday vs. Toronto after being acquired from Tampa Bay earlier in the day. St. Louis is a two-time Art Ross Trophy winner (2003-04, 2012-13) and the 2003-04 Hart Memorial Trophy winner as the league's Most Valuable Player. He is currently tied for sixth in the NHL in goals (29), 10th in points (61), eighth in power play goals (nine), 23rd in power play points (18), 27th in assists (32), and ranks third among league forwards in average ice time (21:40). St. Louis has registered 23 points (12 goals, 11 assists) over his last 21 games, including a 10-game point streak from Jan. 7 – Jan. 25, and tallied his 600th career assist on Jan. 30 at Ottawa.

HOW SWEEP IT IS
The Rangers have swept the season series against the Hurricanes in each of the last two seasons, and enter the contest with a nine-game winning streak against Carolina. The Blueshirts have out-scored the Hurricanes, 36-17, during the streak, which began with a 4-3 shootout victory on Feb. 22, 2011 at Carolina. The Rangers have won five straight games against the Hurricanes at Madison Square Garden, tallying 18 goals while allowing six over the span. The Blueshirts also have a five-game winning streak at Carolina, and have won seven of their last eight meetings in Raleigh. Prior to 2011-12, the last time the Rangers swept the season series against the Hurricanes was during the 2002-03 season (4-0-0).

STAAL IN THE FAMILY
Rangers' defenseman Marc Staal has faced off against his brothers, Carolina forwards Eric and Jordan Staal, in a combined 45 career regular season contests. Below is a breakdown of the brothers' head-to-head matchups:

HAT TRICK TRIO
Derek Stepan posted his second career hat trick with three goals in the Rangers' 5-1 win on Nov. 2 vs. Carolina. Stepan, along with linemates Chris Kreider and Mats Zuccarello, combined for nine points in the contest, with Kreider and Zuccarello assisting on each of Stepan's three goals. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, it was the sixth time since the start of the 2005-06 season that a trio accounted for all of the scoring on a hat trick, with Anaheim's line of Kyle Palmieri (hat trick), Corey Perry, and Ryan Getzlaf being the last to accomplish the feat on Feb. 27, 2013.

ROAD WARRIORS
New York has won 16 of their last 21 contests on the road, including a six-game winning streak from Jan. 4 – Feb. 7. The Rangers also won six straight on the road from Oct. 26 – Nov. 23, marking the first time the Rangers posted two separate six-game winning streaks on the road in a season. The Blueshirts are now 18-11-0 on the road this season, which is tied for first in the Eastern Conference and third in the league overall (road wins). The Rangers' power play ranks second in the NHL on the road (23-90, 25.6%).

KING HENRIK
Henrik Lundqvist has allowed two goals or fewer in 10 of his last 15 games (10-4-1, 2.13 GAA, .930 Sv%, and one shutout over the span), and is 12-5-2 with a 2.29 GAA, .925 Sv%, and one shutout in his last 19 appearances. Lundqvist won his 20th game of the season with a 4-1 victory on Jan. 31 against the Islanders, to extend his streak as the only goalie in the league with an active streak of nine-straight 20-win seasons. Now in his ninth season, Lundqvist is two wins away from the 300th of his NHL career, and three wins away from Mike Richter's franchise record of 301 career victories.